Valve's new Source Filmmaker is being used to create an unbelievable amount of original content, sure, but there's also scope for people to pay homage. Like LiveCurious95 has here, with this ode to the Matrix's "rescue" scene, swapping out Agents with Medics and Keanus for Nicks.
The Matrix Remaked (SFM) [YouTube, via @kpereira]
[Video spoiler] I just wish Gordon hadn't killed Chell, especially considering how half-assed the animation on that kill was. Plus, they seem like they'd be such good friends.
Valve World [YouTube via Reddit]
We featured a work in progress last week, the beginnings of a music video looking at Chell's life after Aperture.
Zachariah Scott has finished his work now, and sent the new link along to us. "After Aperture" is a slow, meditative, thoughtful look at Chell from outside the first person perspective. What exactly does one do with one's life after a couple hundred years down at Aperture Science?
Scott has added notes on his source of inspiration, as well as a few asides on the limits of Source Filmmaker. There are only so many assets available for Chell (as generally one plays Portal in first person), and that limited the available shots. But the Companion Cube really is that large, to scale. All in all, it adds up to a lovely take on a character whose thoughts we rarely get to see.
(Caution: Portal 2 ending spoilers ahead!)
Portal 2 had a satisfying, if ambiguous, ending. The player, in the form of Chell, finally got to breathe the air free of Aperture. There was no deer.
But what comes next for our silent heroine? One fan started this music video using Valve's new Source Filmmaker. It's the very early stages of a work in progress. It doesn't tell us what Chell's future holds. Not yet. But it does look gorgeous, bird, cube, and all.
exile vilify, rough pose work [qqmoarz tumblr]
It's not that the current offerings have been terrible, far from it, but ever since Valve released the Source Film-maker there's been the quiet expectation that it would really start to shine once professional animators, and not just dedicated fans, got hold of it.
Well, here's what it looks like when a professional gets their hands on it.
This lengthy short, detailing the daily problems faced by an Engineer, is the work of James McVinnie, a cinematic designer at BioWare. If you think the animation looks a little better than what we're used to seeing with these clips, that's because he used two Kinects to grab motion-capture data.
Sure, it took him 130 hours, but the fact something this impressive can now come from just one man...
Source Filmmaker - Zip It [YouTube via Reddit]
Oh, Source Filmmakers, is there anything can't you do?
To date, most people have been using Valve's Source Filmmaker for comedic purposes, but let's remember, comedy is but one genre. So it's nice seeing this clip that's reminding us the tools can be used for more serious stuff as well.
This is amazing. The effects here rival those of all but the finest in professional pre-rendered trailers, so it's almost intimidating to think what people will be able to come up with when they really get a handle on the software.
Formerly in closed beta, Valve's Source Filmmaker is now in open beta. So you can get it. And you. And you. And everyone! Get it here.